What is it about exercise
that makes it better than
medicine? Well, for
starters you can enjoy it
when you are well-who
needs medicine when
feeling great? Another
reason is this: The
company you share
exercising is almost
always more cheerful than
those you meet when sick.
Something about hospitals
and other places where
sick people hang out seems
to take the joie de vivre out
of people.
Another reason I prefer
exercise to medicine
concerns attire. I prefer
any kind of exercise
equipment (e.g., Speedo
briefs for swimming,
running shorts, bike
outfits and so on) to the
gowns with the string in
back we're required to wear
for medical tests and
procedures.
I'm guessing you, too, prefer
exercise to medicine. Who
does not? Yet, far more
engage with medicine,
including getting
medical care, than engage
in exercise. How irrational
is that?
The advantages of exercise
and medicine seem pretty
obvious to you and me. Yet,
it is NOT obvious to large
numbers of Americans. If
it were, exercise would be so
popular we'd have to take a
number and wait your
turn to jog or walk on
public roadways.
Now the American Heart
Institute (AHA) is pushing
exercise as a medical
treatment. The new
slogan of some medical
groups is that exercise is
the best medicine. Exercise
is great for health and
exuberant living-no doubt
about that. But, don't let
them medicalize it. It is
not a treatment, it's not a
cure all and nobody needs
a doctor to prescribe
exercise.
Only 22 percent of
Americans get enough
exercise to have healthy
hearts, says the AHA. About
54 percent of Americans
don't exercise at all! This
almost sounds suicidal.
The Surgeon General
considers minimal
exercise as that which
burns 150 calories a day, or
1,000 calories a week. This
amount of burning
requires a 150-pound person
to exercise for only 30 to 45
minutes-that's all.
Dreadful!
I don't like to dwell on
risk factors. Still, if you
know someone who just
can't seem to appreciate
the POSITIVE benefits of
exercise, remind him or her
of some of the NEGATIVE
things that can be
avoided by relying on
exercise rather than
medicine.
Exercise strengthens the
muscle with the best work
ethic in the human body,
namely, the heart. Regular
exercise that reaches a so-
called "target heart rate"-
that's 60 to 70 percent of
maximal heart rate,
makes that muscle beat
more efficiently. It also
strengthens arteries and
improves blood circulation.
A few thousand studies
going back nearly to the
Middle Ages show that
regular exercise lowers the
risk of needing medicine
for heart disease by half.
Of course, it also lowers
blood pressure and overall
cholesterol levels while
raising the level of HDL,
the high density "good"
cholesterol that helps
remove the harmful LDL, or
"bad" low density
cholesterol, in your
arteries.
Exercise benefits people at
risk for diabetes, both type
one and two. It helps
maintain proper glucose
levels, helps prevent large
blood vessel and heart
(cardiovascular) disease
and reduces the need for
insulin for those who have
either type of diabetes.
Exercise is great for
managing weight and
toning, firming and the
like-and by avoiding the
plague of obesity; you also
reduce your risk of heart
disease, diabetes and some
cancers. You have to
"spend" (burn) more
calories than you consume
or you will gain weight.
Most experts claim that
regular exercise decreases
appetite (I personally have
never found that to be
true) and increases
metabolism (definitely
true!), so you burn calories
more efficiently.
Exercise is excellent for
reducing the pain,
inflammation and
stiffness of arthritis.
Exercise increases blood
supply to muscles. It also
improves joint flexibility
and strengthens muscles,
tendons and ligaments.
Exercise is known to reduce
the risk and relieve the
symptoms of clinical
depression and anxiety.
One study published in the
Archives of Internal
Medicine reported that
exercise improved mood
after 16 weeks better than
medicines, prescription
antidepressants in
particular. It does this by
releasing endorphins and
other brain chemicals
that naturally improve
mood while reducing pain.